More User Reviews:

Very nice helles here.
Pours a chill-hazed golden body that leans ever-so-slightly towards amber. Ivory head is adequate, but doesn't last all that long.
Clean and pleasant on the nose, with both the malt and hops making an impression.
Begins malty sweet, with flavors that approach carmel. Vienna-like in a way. Turns breadier towards the middle as the sweetness fades. Some coarse graininess enters late. Miniscule toasted/nutty notes. Grassy, rustic hops provide the finale.
Smooth medium bodied with rolling carbonation.
Solid all around and very authentic tasting.

Esser's Best pours a clear, very deep golden bodty beneath a short head of creamy white foam. The head retention and lacing are somewhat better than average. The aroma is fresh and inviting with a malty character and some bright floral hops. It's medium bodied and crisp in the mouth. A subtly toasty maltiness is at the heart of this beer, but floral and lightly spicy hops give it charisma. It's very well-brewed, clean and well-balanced. A stiff bitterness backs it, and it finishes mostly dry with a dollop of grainy malt and some lingering hops.

appearance: As seen in the lovely little midwestern indie flick about high school hockey, "No Sleep Till Madison"...pours into a pint glass a bright golden orange, light carbonation bubbling, very light beige head with minimal lacing

Color is an amber gold, upward streams of carbonation. One finger of head fizzles out and leaves a ring of lacing.

Initial grassy hop whisper when the cap was opened. Some malt sweetness, buttered biscuits, and a random whiff of lime zest.

Taste is a little dull, it has a clear malt flavor, not as crisp as a Helles should be. Somewhat sweet, ghostly bitterness on a big swallow. This is a utilitarian German-style Helles, nothing too unique, but not too flawed either. Average.

12 oz bottle poured into a pilsner glass. 2379 printed on the neck, no other info.

A - This golden yellow beer is virtually inactive after the pour. It's almost haze-free and has a two-finger white head with low retention and only small fingers of thin lace towards the bottom.

S - Esser's Best smells soft and light with a creaminess to it. Unfortunately the creaminess comes from a corn-like nose. Pale malts seem a bit husky too. Hop aroma is totally void leaving this German style lager smelling more like an American cream ale.

T - Pale malts make up the majority of the flavor while a low husky grain flavor lingers annoyingly in the background. A kiss of floral hops is there too but could definitely use some bringing out. Generic tasting otherwise.

M - Esser's Best is medium-light in body with low carbonation making it a smooth brew with a soft creaminess to it. Not bad but not on par with the style. Again, it feels more like an American cream ale.

D - Sorry Esser but if this is your best, you've got a lot of work ahead of you. It's mediocre at best and granted, I'm not having it in it's prime (assuming the neck numbers resemble a date) but I think that the leeway I gave it certainly makes up for that possibility. Just plain and out of the style, it needs to be hoppier, crisper, and cleaner in flavor. It missed the mark on this but it remains drinkable for what it is.

Pours a darker golden straw than a lot of lagers. Only about half an inch of head, fairly quickly receding, but it leaves some lace on the glass and some foam floating on top. Not a lot of aroma. Very malty and more flavorful than I expected, however. Between the flavor, the color, and a rich, almost porterlike mouthfeel, it plays more like a red ale than a lager. It's definitely not the light, crisp beer I thought I was getting, but it was a pleasant surprise.

An interesting attempt at an authentic German style lager. The beer is contract brewed for the Cross Plains Beer Company by the Stevens Point Brewery, and I detect some of the Point style in this beer, whether intentional or not.

The beer looks very nice in the glass, golden body with no haze and a nice soft white head forming.

The smell was a bit harsh. I don't think European noble hops were used, perhaps they used Cluster with their distinctive bit.

The taste is full-flavored but leaning heavily on a grainy malt base followed by a surprising hop bitterness that smooths out quicly for a very nice finish.

The beer has a very nice full-body to it, but it still remains very drinkable.

12 ounce bottle. Pours out a clear yellow with a lot of bubbles. Grassy, somewhat skunky smell. Malty bread flavor with an herbal, grassy bitterness. There's some caramel flavor too. Not too complex, but the malt and hops work well together. Becomes a little watery in the finish. Good drinkability. This is a pretty good Germal style beer, and a little better than Esser's other offering.

Poured into a pint glass the beer is an orange golden color with a tiny bit of head. No lacing to be seen. The smell is sweet grain With a malty tone. The flavor is rather muted. Fairly dry. Some malt some hop bite but nothing really pops. The beer seems rather light in body. Moderate carbonation. This is a pretty standard german lager.

Smell is a sublte balance of malt and spicy hop. Smells a little to light for the style. Not much to it.Taste is balanced between toasty malts and some spicy hops. Very clean and sessionable. It is easy to drink, but lacks anything to make it memorable. That being said I would not turn one down.

This is a good beer. Simple and to the point. If you want a step up from a BMC, this is a contender. I would support small craft brewery first and this is a way to do it when you want something simple.

I bought this in a 8-pack Mircobrewery variety pack from Woodman's in Janesville, WI for $12 in late 2010.

Esser's is one of the lesser known and smaller Wisconsin beers. It pours a golden amber color with a good scent of malts and hops. Upon tasting there is a good full flavor taste that is long lasting and delicious. I was certainly surprised by it's taste. A must try for any Wisconsin beer lover.

I tried this beer at a restaurant/bar near Madison WI. I started with this beer and a plate of hot wings and it was a perfect match. They went together perfectly.

I poured the Essers Best in a glass. It had a very nice head with very nice retention. I thought it was an excellent beer for the style and had a few with my dinner. It really went well with the spicy food and I thought the inability was great.

I have purchased this beer several times since I first had it and as long as I can find it I will continue to buy it.